Seven senior members of the extremist Islamic State (IS) group were arrested by Iraqi forces in the northern province of Nineveh, the Iraqi military said, Trend reports citing Xinhua.
Based on intelligence reports, a force from the Iraqi National Intelligence Service (INIS) carried out an operation in the provincial capital Mosul, some 400 km north of Baghdad, arresting the seven IS members under arrest warrants, a statement by the media office of the Iraqi Joint Operations Command (JOC) said.
The arrested militants confessed their involvement in the terrorist group in Nineveh province, the statement said.
The Iraqi forces recently intensified their operations against the extremist IS group as part of their efforts to provide a safe environment ahead of the country's parliamentary elections slated for October 10.
The security situation in Iraq has been improving since Iraqi security forces defeated the IS militants in 2017.
However, IS remnants have since melted into urban centers or deserts and rugged areas, carrying out frequent guerilla attacks against security forces and civilians.